In recent years, a number of new telephone service features have been provided by an Advanced Intelligent Network (AIN). The AIN evolved out of a need to increase the capabilities of the telephone network architecture in order to meet the growing needs of telephone customers or users. The AIN architecture generally comprises two networks, a data messaging network and a circuit-switched, trunked communications network. The trunked communications network handles voice and data communications between dispersed network locations, whereas the data messaging network is provided for controlling operations of the trunked communications network.
A privacy screening service is a service that enables a subscriber to screen incoming calls. The privacy screening service provides information to the called party (in this case, the subscriber to the privacy screening service) that allows the subscriber to make an informed decision as to whether or not to answer a call. For example, a subscriber may (and typically does) use the privacy screening service to block all unidentified calls from going through. Private telephone numbers are telephone numbers that block services such as “caller ID” that would otherwise identify the caller to the called party. In telephone systems that offer private numbers and a privacy screening service to its customers, a call from a private number to a subscriber with the privacy screening service cannot be completed automatically, unless the caller authorizes the system to override the privacy of his number.
Typically, when a caller such as a telemarketer places a call to a subscriber of a privacy screening service, the caller will block the display of the calling party's telephone number. A called party who subscribes to privacy screening typically will not chose to override the privacy screening feature and hence will not receive the call. The caller will accrue a charge for the call (frequently, a long-distance charge) even though the caller has not been able to speak to the called party. In many cases (e.g., the caller makes a considerable number of local toll or long-distance calls) this results in the accrual of considerable call charges even though the calls are not completed. It would be helpful if there were a service that would enable the caller to determine if a called party is a subscriber to a privacy screening service, before a charge accrues to the caller or to otherwise indicate to a billing system that these calls are to be billed at a different rate.